Swedish Institute Scholarships for the Western Balkans for Master’s Level Studies [ENG]

The SI Scholarships for the Western Balkans aim at supporting advanced level studies and research within the selected fields in order to contribute to closer relations between the Western Balkans and the European Union.

The SI Scholarships for the Western Balkans aim at supporting advanced level studies and research within the selected fields in order to contribute to closer relations between the Western Balkans and the European Union.

The programme offers a total of 10–15 scholarships for the year 2015/2016. The exact number of scholarships for each level (masters/PhD studies/post-docs) depends on the quality and length of the applied study period of all applications received.

SI Scholarships for the Western Balkans is the current title for the programme previously known as SI Scholarships for East Europe.

The scholarships are intended for full-time master’s level studies in Sweden and cover both living costs and tuition fees.

Scholarship application period: 2-13 February 2015.

Countries

The programme is open to candidates from Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia.

Who is eligible?

The scholarships are only intended for students who are required to pay the tuition fee according to the information at University Admissions.

There is no age limit for scholarship holders.

A scholarship cannot be granted for a student who:

Has already lived in Sweden for two years or more previous to the scholarship period.

Has a Swedish or EU/EES-citizenship, permanent residence permit or work permit in Sweden.

Has previously been awarded a Swedish Institute scholarship for master’s level studies or research at a Swedish university/university college.

Already holds a degree from a Swedish university/university college.

Is currently enrolled in a study programme at a Swedish university/university college.

Eligible programmes

Only programmes within the areas of social science and environmental science are eligible. Eligible Programmes Western Balkans 2015-2016

Scholarship benefits and period

The scholarship covers both the tuition fee (which is paid directly to the Swedish university/university college by the Swedish Institute) and living expenses to the amount of SEK 9,000 per month.

The scholarship is only awarded for programmes starting in the autumn semester (August/September) and is granted for one academic year, i.e. for two semesters at a time. It will be extended for programmes longer than two semesters provided that the student’s study results are satisfactory.

The scholarship is designed to cover living costs and study expenses for the scholarship holder. There are no grants for family members. The granted scholarship period cannot be altered or extended beyond the study programme period nor can the scholarship be transferred to another study programme at a Swedish university. Travel grants

Scholarship holders will receive a travel grant in connection with the scholarship. The travel grant is a one-time payment of SEK 5,000. Insurance

Scholarship holders are insured by the Swedish State Group Insurance against illness and accident during the scholarship period. SI Network for Future Global Leaders

All Swedish Institute scholarship holders are invited to become members of the SI Network for Future Global Leaders – a network that offers unique opportunities during and after the stay in Sweden. Together with other talented people from all around the world, the scholarship holder is able to take part in a variety of events, exchange ideas and create networks that benefit both to career and personal development.

How to apply

Please note that the scholarship application is separate from the application to the master’s programmes at Swedish universities. Make sure to complete your application to the master’s programmes that you wish to apply to before the deadline 15 January 2015. You apply by using the national online application service Universityadmissions.se. Pay your application fee to University Admissions before the fee deadline 2 February 2015. Please make sure to check for any updates at Universityadmissions.se.

Once you have submitted your application to the master’s programme/s it will be assigned a personal Application number consisting of seven or eight digits. You must use this Application number when applying for a Swedish Institute scholarship (scholarship application period 2-13 February 2015). You will be required to submit a Motivation letter and Europass CV with your scholarship application. These can be prepared well in advance of the actual scholarship application period. Kindly note that no other documents than the mandatory enclosures will be considered.

The Swedish Institute is looking for applicants who display both intellectual ability and leadership potential and welcome applications regardless of age, gender and religious beliefs. The scholarship programme aims for diversity amongst the scholarship holders.

General notes

You may apply to a maximum of four different master’s programmes in total, but make sure to check whether the programmes are listed as eligible for the scholarship.

Applications must be submitted online with enclosures in any of the following formats: .doc, .docx, or .pdf.

All application documents must be submitted by the application deadline. Late documents will not be considered.

Limit your documents to the numbers or characters specified.

Exceeding pages or characters will not be considered.

As a Swedish authority, the Swedish Institute (SI) operates under the Swedish Principle of Public Access to Information. This means that any data registered in our systems will be treated as a public document. In accordance with this, information about your application and qualifications will be accessible to the public on request.

Steps to complete your Swedish Institute scholarship application:

Prepare a Motivation Letter according to the template Motivation letter 2015 Western Balkans. Motivation letters in any other templates or formats are NOT valid. Make sure to read the questions in the Motivation Letter thoroughly and be specific and personal in your reasoning. Without exception, answers may not exceed the allowed number of characters (letters and spaces) for each question.

Prepare a Curriculum Vitae (CV) in English only using the Europass format of maximum three pages. Any CV submitted in another format than the Europass in English is NOT valid. Additional pages will not be considered.

When the Swedish Institute scholarship application period opens on 2 February 2015, apply through our online system. Use the personal application number retrieved from Universityadmissions.se. Do not forget to submit your Motivation Letter and CV.

The scholarship application form will be available on this page during the application period 2-13 February 2015.

Please note that you need to submit a separate copy of your scholarship application for each eligible master’s programme that you have applied to. For example, if you have applied to the maximum four master’s programmes, you must submit four separate online scholarship applications. Each application must have a Motivation Letter and CV attached. You may use the same Motivation Letter and CV for each application, or create unique ones for each programme.

What happens with my scholarship application?

All eligible and complete applications are assessed by a selection committee taking into consideration the relevance and quality of the Motivation Letter and CV.

Only students who have been offered a place in a master’s programme after the first selection round on 26 March 2015 will be considered for a scholarship. Students who have been listed as reserves will not be considered. Unfortunately, no scholarships are available for late admissions.

In early April, the Swedish Institute will publish a list of successful scholarship candidates at Studyinsweden.se. The publication date will be posted on the website’s calendar. Due to the large number of applicants, only those who are offered a scholarship will be notified. Please note that you have to accept your place at the study programme at Universityadmissions.se before the indicated deadline.

Each successful candidate will receive an official scholarship offer by e-mail and is requested to accept or reject this offer by the deadline indicated.

Will there be a reserve list for the Scholarship?

Each year the Swedish Institute awards more scholarships than are available as there are always several students who do not accept their scholarship offer. Because of this practice, we do not have a reserve list for scholarships.

Key dates and deadlines for applications to the academic year 2015/2016